Chapter 11 It was late afternoon when she woke up alone. The rain against her window tapped her into consciousness where she was greeted by a cold empty bed. Hermione sat up, pulling her legs closer to her and burying her head in her hands. Her clothes lay strewn about the room, carelessly discarded in the morning's activities. She never dreamt her first time with Draco would be the way it was. To her, it was better. A few moments later she was entering the Great Hall for something to eat. She spotted Harry, sitting alone at the far end of the table, pondering a cup of tea. Harry looked up as she sat down across from him, judging by the strange look in her eyes that something had happened. She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "What're you looking at me like that for?" Harry glanced down, stirring his tea slowly. "I just thought you looked different is all." Hermione went red, and started to reply to Harry when she heard a swishing of robes from the entrance. Snape was glancing warily at her, then turned on his heel and left. "Did you just see that? Hermione? What's going on?" Hermione had seen. She had seen Snape, staring at Hermione as if silently interrogating her. She had seen the look of pure fear, adrenaline and concern etched on his face. A look that sent chills down Hermione's spine. Apparently Harry came to the same conclusion. "Hermione…where's Draco?" Hermione was gone, running down the Great Hall, down the staircase, past the kitchens and into the dungeons, rounding a corner and slamming into Professor Snape's door. She burst into the room, out of breath and terrified. Snape and Dumbledore seemed to be arguing, but stopped immediately when Hermione snapped the door open. "Where is he?" she panted. "Where's Draco?" "Now Miss Granger, you must calm down," began Dumbledore, but Snape interrupted him with a glare towards Hermione. "I could ask you the same thing, Granger. I thought for sure you would know." The look on Hermione's face gave Snape all the answers he so desperately needed. "I knew it," he said quietly. "It was only a matter of time." "Wh-what are you talking about?" she stammered. Dumbledore glanced at her apologetically, "Miss Granger, I think it would be best if you didn't know." Dumbledore had never treated her this way before, like a lovesick school girl who wouldn't know any better. He had always treated her with respect, as an equal in both wit and dignity. "Is this about Voldemort? Because Professor, I assure you, I definitely need to be here for this." "Granger, if you really must know, it seems your little lover-boy has become fed up with it all, and decided to join the Dark Lord after all, completely negating our entire plan, and possibly sending the Wizarding World into absolute war. Congratulations, I hope your little romp was worth it," he finished with a spat. "I don't understand," she whispered, her head reeling. Dumbledore sighed wearily, placing his hands together. He began gently, "Hermione, Draco and Professor Snape have been in the Dark Lord's circle as spies for me. The plan was that Draco, after careful plotting and diligent lessons in Occlumency, would receive his Dark Mark in order to seal himself into the inner circle. However, it seems that Draco has made a change of plans, without informing any of us, to go ahead and do this a lot sooner than expected." Hermione's mouth had gone dry, her hands itching. "How much sooner?" "Right now."